1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a faucet assembly, more particularly to a faucet assembly with a filtering device disposed in a faucet body.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional faucet assembly is shown to include a faucet body 1, a tubular housing 2, a spout 4 and a control knob 3.
As illustrated, the faucet body 1 defines a water passage chamber having a cold water inlet adapted to be connected fluidly with a cold water supply source 114, a hot water inlet adapted to be connected fluidly with a hot water supply source 115, and a water outlet for discharging water therefrom.
The tubular housing 2 is sleeved rotatably around the faucet body 1, and has a peripheral wall with upper and lower ends establishing a water-tight seal in cooperation with the faucet body 1 so as to define an annular chamber between the tubular housing 2 and the faucet body 1, and between the upper and lower ends of the peripheral wall. The annular chamber is in fluid communication with the water passage chamber via the water outlet. The housing 2 further has a spout mounting port which is in fluid communication with the annular chamber and from which the spout 4 extends integrally and outwardly so as to guide the water inside the annular chamber to an exterior of the faucet assembly.
The control knob 3 is mounted on the tubular housing 2 for regulating and stopping flow of the water from the annular chamber to the exterior of the faucet assembly.
Note that water discharged from the aforesaid faucet assembly is not filtered and is thus fit only for washing and common use. In order to obtain drinking water, a two-spout faucet assembly 100 (see FIG. 1A) is provided with two spouts that are spaced apart from each other. As a result, a relatively large sink is needed to be disposed under the two spouts of the assembly 100 (see FIG. 1A).
Therefore, the object of this invention is to provide a faucet assembly with a filtering device disposed in a faucet body so as to minimize the dimension thereof and so as to facilitate replacement of a filtering cartridge in the faucet body. In addition, only a volume-reduced sink is required for mounting the faucet assembly of the present invention.
Accordingly, the faucet assembly of the present invention includes a faucet body, a filtering device, a spout unit, a valve and a control knob. The faucet body includes an upright portion that defines a cylindrical cartridge receiving chamber with upper and lower ends, an inlet passage that is in fluid communication with the lower end of the cartridge receiving chamber and that is adapted to be connected fluidly to a water supply source, and an outlet passage that is in fluid communication with the upper end of the cartridge receiving chamber. The filtering device includes a filtering cartridge which is disposed removably within the cartridge receiving chamber and which has an outer wall surface that cooperates with the upright portion of the faucet body to define upper and lower watertight seals therebetween, and an inner wall surface that defines a water passage chamber between the upper and lower watertight seals. The water passage chamber has upper and lower ends that are in fluid communication with the outlet and inlet passages of the cartridge receiving chamber, respectively. The spout unit is attached to the upright portion of the faucet body, and includes a spout pipe which is in fluid communication with the outlet passage of the water passage chamber and which is formed with a discharging port for release of filtered water therefrom. The valve is mounted within the faucet body. The control knob is connected operably with the valve, and is exposed outwardly to the faucet body for regulating and stopping water flow from the faucet body to the spout pipe.